For many years, it has been common to chill beers, lagers and similar beverages in clubs, bars, hotels and other venues from room or cellar temperature, typically around 5 to 15° C. to somewhere around 0° C. for sale to patrons. In the following specification, except where otherwise indicated, the term “beer” should be construed as including any, typically carbonated, and/or relatively low strength alcoholic beverage whether brewed or not. “Beverage” is to include carbonated soft drinks also.
Many beverage companies such as brewers, soft and ready to drink manufacturers often require their beverages to be dispensed at a particular temperature or within a particular range of temperatures when sold in bars, hotels or the like. For example, in Australia, beers are typically required to be sold at a temperature of between 2 and 4° C. inside the glass, which means that the beer has to be dispensed from the tap in a hotel or bar at around 1° to 2° C. to allow for the heat capacity of the glass, which will typically be at a temperature greater than 4° C.
The beer, lager, or the like, is typically chilled by a heat exchanger. Such heat exchangers are usually either installed under a traditional bench or bar top or in the keg cellar, so the size of the heat exchanger is a consideration. At the same time, the dispensing apparatus must be sufficiently efficient to be able to dispense beer at the correct temperature, as prescribed by the beverage company, and on demand.
International Patent Application No PCT/AU2006/000459 entitled “Improvements in control of heat exchangers” the entire contents which are incorporated herein by reference, discloses such a heat exchanger suitable for cooling beverages.
The applicant's co-pending Australian provisional application No 2008900054 entitled “Improvements in Heat Exchangers for Dispensing Sub-Zero Beer” filed 4 Jan. 2008, the entire contents which are incorporated herein by reference, also discloses a heat exchanger suitable for cooling beverages.
However, whereas until a few years ago, patrons of hotels and bars were happy to drink chilled beer at a temperature of around 2 to 4° C., dispensing beer at even cooler temperatures, even subzero temperatures, is now fashionable in bars, restaurants, hotels and other venues. It will be appreciated that since beer contains alcohol, and is carbonated (under pressure) this depresses the freezing point of the beer such that it freezes at temperatures below the freezing point of water. Generally, the stronger the beer in alcohol content, the lower the temperature the beer freezes at. Dispensing beers at such low temperatures is tricky and is not possible without an increase in the performance of older type heat exchangers.
More recently, it has been mooted to produce iced beer, however this has not proved practical with traditional draught beverage dispensing systems.
Any discussion of documents, acts, materials, devices, articles or the like which has been included in the present specification is solely for the purpose of providing a context for the present invention. It is not to be taken as an admission that any or all of these matters form part of the prior art base or were common general knowledge in the field relevant to the present invention as it existed before the priority date of each claim of this application.